The present invention relates to gas generant compositions that upon combustion produce a relatively smaller amount of solids and a relatively abundant amount of gas. It is an ongoing challenge to reduce the amount of solids and increase the amount of gas thereby decreasing the filtration requirements for an inflator. As a result, the filter may be either reduced in size or eliminated altogether thereby reducing the weight and/or size of the inflator. Additionally, reduction of combustion solids provides relatively greater amounts of gaseous products per gram or unit of gas generating composition. Accordingly, less gas generant is required when greater mols of gas are produced per gram of gas generant. The result is typically a smaller and less expensive inflator due to reduced manufacturing complexity. Accordingly, optimizing the processing of constituents that contribute to less solids and more gas would assist in the production of such gas generants, which may also be known as “smokeless” gas generants.
Yet another concern in the manufacture of “smokeless” gas generants is the loss of energetic behavior and therefore gaseous yield, during the molding or forming of the gas generant. This is particularly relevant with regard to polymeric constituents including polymeric 5-aminotetrazole.